lowering a 64 impala

Me and a buddy are going to drop his Impala but before he forks out the money to buy drop spring we wanna try to heat or cut the coils we got. I can see where the excessive heat could be a problem on the metal.what are possible draw backs of both ways and the proper way to do it if there is one

 

DO NOT heat coils. The car will ride like shit. My 62 impala wagon has 2" drop spindles in the front and a nine inch Ford rear with cut coils.

 

You should go do an intro in the intro section before the old timers get on your case. I cut two coils from my Pontiac in the front and it still rides good. I used blocks in the back

 

Shorter length shocks. Cut 1 or 2 wraps (2" per wrap drop). Same for the rear. You need a coil compressor. And a seasoned veteran in auto mods to be there to guide you safely along.

 

Cut two coils all the way around & see where it lands.

JH

 

Hydros... lol

 

the '58's (same chassis) had optional air bags, I had a Bel-Air 4 door ex-Nevada HP car with factory bags, ended up swapping them out with Air-Rides (this was 1968 time frame)

 

Thanks for all the help guys

 

By spring compressor you mean a jack right? Ive seen lots of people TRY to use a spring compressor on these cars and it is scarry!! I just use a jack IF the car is complete, meaning the motor and trans are in the car. Been doing it that way for 20 years with no flying springs yet. Cant say the same about spring compressors. I tried one once and the damn thing let go and damn near killed our shop kid!

 

That sits really nice.

 

For safety I loop a length of chain around a coil in the middle of the spring and then around the frame, connecting the chain ends to make a loop. Loose enough i can use the jack to lower the A-arm, but if the spring should fly out the chain will keep it from causing harm to me or nearby objects.

Cutting coils should use a cutoff wheel. Don't heat them, that screws up the heat treat in the spring. Springs are heat treated.

I cut 1 coil and used drop spindles on front of my 59 El Camino, same suspension as your Impala. In back I just cut the coils, don;t recall the amount I cut, think it was 1.5 coils? See here:


I should have never sold that car............. It went to Sweden, anyone over that area ever see it? Sold it about 5 years ago, so it may look a lot different.

 

I've done it both ways with no problems either way. The trick to cutting springs with a torch is to submerge the spring in a bucket of water so that the cut line is just above the water line. This protects the heat treat in the rest of the spring. Yes, you'll anneal a small area next to the cut, but the effect of that will be negligible.

Start by cutting 1/2 coil or so and see how it looks. Yeah, it's a PITA to have to install and remove the springs, but you can't make them LONGER...

 

But, by the time you get done you're an expert at your suspension!!

 

you shoulda sold me that car!

 

I lowered my '64 by cutting all four springs and it rides great still..of course i do have brand new shocks, and hotchkis kit to help with the handling, but if you take your time it will be fine. I used the heavy duty springs.

 

Just get the old hot wrench out heat them up reel good. Slam that Bitch in the weeds

 

Start thinking about your drive shaft also
Slip joint and new carrier bearings

 

Bttt

 

I've heated up several, they still ride nice. Cutting them is a better choice though.

 

3 inch lowering springs on my 62 impala you have to watch the drive shaft hitting the floor pan

 

Or you could be a complete rebel, and leave that thing in the air as mother GM intended....or in my case, put it back up in the air. It sure does save the breast bone.

 

Does any one have any pictures of a 64 with 2 full wraps cut? I don't care about the ride cause it won't be a permanent stance, just worried about cutting to much it rides the frame or kicks the camber out.

 

Shimming the upper a-arms will happen when taking out so much from the coils. The lowers will 'kick out' the ball joint, so the uppers will have to be spaced out to bring it back to square. There is a special cross bar for this ($) A lot of guys here on the HAMB have cut 2 full wraps from these '58-'64's with out too much fuss. Good, shorter quality ft shocks are a must for helping the ride. If your car does not have a ft sway bar, add one later. Even a skinny stocker is better than nothing. 2 full coils is roughly 4" drop. Depends on the coils age and spec (wagon w/air, 6 banger, ect)

 

It has a sway bar, I just wanna drop it so I can cruise the rest I the summer then it's getting disk conv and full air this winter. Thanks for the help!

 

3" drop coils from JAMCO... Header dumps scrape every once in awhile, but I'm switching to ram horn exhaust manifolds soon, so that won't be an issue for long.

 

How about the good old fashioned way with brand new springs from your local auto parts store? Go to the store, ask to see the MOOG spring catalog. Look up your car. Go to the back of the book where you will find sections listing the spring styles, find your spring part numbers in the listings. Now go up or down from there looking for springs with same wire size, similar spring rate, but shorter in length. Order them, install with shorter shocks and you have a good ride and NEW springs.

 

Ah yes, in the OP's post he wants to cut the old ones, THEN save up and buy new, made to order springs. The shorter shocks advice is there too.